1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cooling systems for cooling electronic equipment, and particularly to high density systems such as ceiling and floor mounted systems, to allow increased cooling capacity in a smaller volume.
2. Background and Objects of the Invention
The growth of the computer industry and telephony over the past few decades has been phenomenal. The integration of these technologies, for example, in telecommunications switching and in datacenters, has lead to greater and greater efficiencies as larger numbers of communications are handled by fewer components, which are typically housed in a central control room.
As is readily apparent, if equipment is not effectively cooled, the internal temperature of the electronic components in the equipment substantially increases, thereby leading to significantly reduced system performance and, in some cases, total system failure. If a cooling system inefficiently cools the equipment, either the equipment may fail due to increased operating temperature or the costs for cooling the equipment may be unnecessarily high. What is needed, then, is a cooling system having its cooling characteristics closely tailored to the heating characteristics of the equipment to be cooled.
Additionally there is a premium on space in such environments and an increasing need for cooling capacity. One alternative is to move the cooling system into the ceiling such that the cooling coils, fans and a portion of an enclosed room form an enclosed space behind the cooling coils and fans that is then used as a plenum for returning the cooling fluid to the proximal location of the object to be cooled. Alternatively, the cooling system may be moved into the floor such that the cooling coils, fans and a portion of an enclosed room form an enclosed area behind the cooling coils and fans that is then used as a plenum for returning the cooling fluid to the area to be cooled. Cooling coils and fans are added as necessary to fully enclose the space behind the cooling coils and fans.
The present invention overcomes the above-discussed shortcomings and satisfies a significant need for reducing space requirements while increasing the cooling capacity of cooling systems.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a cooling system includes a fan, a heat exchanger such as a cooling coil containing a cooling fluid, air or any other gas that would serve to transfer heat from the heat generating object to the cooling coils, and a volume defined by at least one wall, a first surface such as a ceiling, and a second surface such as a false ceiling. The wall is joined to the first surface forming a partially enclosed area. The second surface comprises a fan and a cooling coil, where the fan and the cooling coil are interleaved with each other. The second surface is coupled to the at least one wall. The first surface, the second surface abuts the wall form forming an essentially enclosed volume to be used as a plenum for the air as the air is moved between the cooling coils and the fan. The fan forces the air out of the plenum towards the heat generating object where heat from the heat generating object is transferred from the heat generating object to the air. As the fan forces the air out of the plenum, the fan in turn creates an area of reduced pressure in the plenum that in turn draws the air into the plenum through the cooling coils. As the air passes through the cooling coils, heat that was transferred from the heat generating object to the air is transferred from the air, through the cooling coils and into the cooling fluid.